Detergent compositions



Sept. 27, 1960 E. A. SCHWOEPPE DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS Filed May 28, 1956 3 3/1 Pradwi flfa a; fla

m N Q INVENTOR- ATTORNEK;

DETERGENT COMPOSITIONS Eugene A. Schwoeppe, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Procter 8; Gamble Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed May 28, 1956, Ser. No. 587,505

17 Claims. (Cl. 252-409) This invention relates to detergent compositions, and more particularly to detergent compositions which have markedly depressed sudsing performance but which Sates Patent possess a high level of heavy duty cleansing ability com- 1 parable to general purpose detergent compositions.

Certain automatic laundering machines currently on the market, and frequently referred to as automatic drum-type washers, are provided with a rotatable cylinder or drum essentially mounted horizontally and provided with ridges, sometimes referred to as ribs, projecting radially and internally from and lengthwise of the cylindrical wall. In use, the detergent solution and soiled clothes are introduced into the drum; then agitation is effected by rotating the drum, the ribs assisting in tumbling the clothes with the washing solution. It has been found that general purpose laundering products including detergent compositions containing anionic synthetic sulfate and sulfonate detergents as the active synthetic V ingredient, do not give their best cleansing performance when employed in such machines because the suds formed at concentrations required for good cleaning tend to cushion the movement of the clothes being washed and diminish agitation to the point Where inefficient cleansing results.

Recognition of this sudsing problem has resulted in the development of detergent compositions based on nonionic synthetic detergents such as the high molecular weight alcohol ether and high molecular weight fatty acid ester derivatives of ethyleneoxide condensation products. Such nonionic detergent compositions possess cleansing activity with relatively low sudsing performance, but they are not equal in washing performance to the heavy-duty anionic synthetic detergent compositions in the cleansing of heavily soiled cotton fabrics even though used at washing concentrations above those customarily used for general purpose heavy duty laundering products.

Thus, there has arisen a demand for detergent compositions which possess superior heavy-duty cleansing power but with depressed suds producing power.

Recently, eiforts have been made to copewith this specific sudsing and detergency problem and have resulted in the proposal of a certain mixture of higher saturated fatty acids, or soaps thereof, as a suds depressant, in combination with anionic sulfate and/ or sulfonate heavy-duty synthetic detergent compositions. These recent advances have been made the subject of patent application Serial Number 543,256, filed October 27, 1955, and assigned by Wayne L. St. John and William J. Griebstein to the assignee of the present application.

An object of the present invention is to provide further improvements in suds depressants for use with heavyduty anionic synthetic detergent formulations.

A further object is to provide heavy-duty synthetic detergent compositions which are essentially anionic and which have adequate heavy-duty cleansing power together with markedly depressed sudsing power.

A still further object is to provide essentially anionic heavy-duty synthetic detergent compositions which can be employed in the horizontal drum-type washer in suf- "ice 2 ficient concentration for high level laundering performance without introducing excessive sudsing and problems resulting therefrom. i Y 2 These and other objects, which will be readily apparent, are achieved by the present invention, a'det'ailed description of which follows. i

I have discovered that heavy-duty detergent compositions, for example those described in Byerly USP.

2,486,921 and Strain U.S.P. 2,486,922 and including syn- I thetic anionic sulfate or. sulfonate detergents in combination with from about 1 to about 5 parts of alkali metal tripolyphosphate, are materially modified with respect to sudsingpower, without undesirable adverse effect on cleansing power, by the addition of certain fatty acid mixtures and/ or soaps thereof together with certain nonionic substances as more fully hereinafter described. Since the sudsing power of such known anionic detergent compositions is materially decreased by combination with such mixtures, compositions of the invention can be readily and successfully employed in high concentration in automatic drum type washers which, as indicated above, require low sudsing characteristics for achieving efficient washing performance.

The present invention is based on the observationthat the nonionic component (nonionic compound or mixture of nonionic compounds) and saturated high molecular weight acyl-containing component (fatty acid mixture vand/ or alkali metal soaps thereof) act synergistically to depress sudsing of anionic non-soap synthetics while maintaining an available high level of cleaning power. Thus, the lower sudsing characteristics of the mixtures herein covered enable use of higher concentrations of detergent in washing and thus permit achievinga level of cleansing not heretofore obtainable with any type of laundering composition in the drum type washer. In relation to the work of St. John and Griebstein, thepresent invention permits the use of a lower concentration of acyl-containing component, or alternatively, enables the use of acylcontaining mixtures which are less heterogeneous.

The constituent employed in the present invention and containing the acyl radical can be described as a mixture of at least two high molecular weight compounds having 'acyl radicals of different carbon atom content and selected from the group consisting of saturated fatty acids having from about 14 to about 31 carbon atoms and alkali metal soaps thereof, said mixture containing at least 50% by weight of compounds having at least 16 carbon atoms in the molecule. Hyfac 431, a commercial fatty acid mixture derived from hydrogenated marine oil and more fully hereinafter defined, is an example. The nonionic constituent of the suds depressant can be broadly classified as the condensation product of water soluble polyoxyalkylene with a hydrophobic, or waterinsoluble, base compound. Pluronic F-68, a commercial product more fully hereinafter defined, is an example.

The synergistic action which takes place when nonionic and the fatty acid mixture are combined has been demonstrated by the average results of a. number of laundering operations conducted under practical conditions. These average results are indicated graphically in the accompanying drawing wherein the relationship of suds level to product usage in laundering operations conducted under conventional conditions in a Bendix home-laundry drum type washer is shown. The laundering conditions were as follows Water volume 7% gallons, approximately.

The curves marked A, B, C, and D represent the average results obtained in laundering with the following products A, B, C, and D respectively. 7 Product A U lo parts sodium alkyl benzene sulfonate in which the alkyl radical averaged about 12 carbon atoms and was sde iv Q P p py 40 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 12 parts silicate solids 2Q parts sodium carbonate 12 parts sodium sulfate and water Product B V fdparts alkyl benzene sulfonate (same as used in Pfod- A net A) parts fatty acid mixture (Hyfac 431 as described bew) '40 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 12 parts silicate solids (same as used in Product A) 20 parts sodium carbonate 7 parts sodium sulfate and water Product C Iii. parts alkyl benzene sulfonate (same as used in Prodnot A) 4 parts nonionic (Pluronic L-64 as described below) '40 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 12 parts silicate solids (same as used in Product A) 20 parts sodium carbonate 12 parts sodium sulfate and water In consideration of this Product C, it should be observed that 4% of the active anionic synthetic detergent replaced with 4% of nonionic synthetic detergent.

Product D 12 parts alkyl benzene sulfonate (same as used in Product A) 4 parts nonionic (same as used in Product C) 5 parts fatty acid mixture (same as used in Product B) 40 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 12 parts silicate solids (same as used in Product A) 20 parts sodium carbonate 7 parts sodium sulfate and water The sudsing characteristics of all four products were observed during the washing operation. The amount of -siids noted was indicated by a figure on a numerical scale of O to 5, indicating the amount of suds measured in units obtained by dividing the circular glass of the door of the washer into five equal units along the vertical diameter. Higher suds levels are indicated by higher numerian values, a level of about 2 /2 units representing the recommended suds level for this type of washer. The following table and explanatory remarks'will i1- lu'strate the unique synergistic effect observed in combiriing the nonionic with the fatty acid mixture.

The above data show that the amount of product of the present invention capable of use under desirable sudsing conditions in the drum type washer is much greater than the amount which would be predicted from the results employing the acyl-contai'ning depressant alone or nonionic alone.

Thus it is seen that at a suds level of 2 /2 units (the recommended for the drum type washer employed) the maximum usage of anionic detergent composition containing no suds depressant was 1% oz. When 5% of acyl-containing depressant was added to the composition of Product A, then the maximum amount of product that could be tolerated without exceeding the maximum recommended suds level was 2% oz. Thus, the addition of the 'acyl-containing depressant enabled an increase of /2 oz. in detergent composition usage without exceeding the recommended sudsing level When 4% of nonionic was employed to replace 4% of the alkyl benzene sulfonate of Product A, then the product usage could be increased to 2% oz. without exceeding the maximum suds level. The use of nonionic alone, therefore, enabled an increase in product usage of 1 oz.

When the formulation of the detergent composition was modified as in Product D of the present invention to include both 5% of the acyl-containing depressant and 4% nonionic, then the product usage could be as high as 5 /2 oz. without exceeding the maximum recommended suds level. Thus, an increase of 3% oz. in product usage was made possible by the combination of nonionic and acyl-containing component in the detergent composition.

In comparison of these results, it will be observed that if the effects of the acyl-containing depressant and nonionic in Product D were strictly additive, then one would expect that only 1 /2 oz. increase in detergent usage could be tolerated without exceeding the maximum recom; mended suds level of 2 /2. Unexpectedly, the use of 3% oz. of additional Product D can be tolerated, thus achieving maximum cleansing performance possible with the anionic without exceeding the maximum recommended suds level.

The synergistic action of the acyl-containing depressant and nonionic at usage concentrations required to give only 1 /2 suds units is similarly shown in the table above.

Thus, a combination of acyl-containing component and nonionic in accordance with the present invention is more effective, part for part, than either component used alone in depressing sudsing power of the anionic.

The outstanding advantage of this contribution is that more anionic detergent can be used and better cleaning performance obtained than with any other comparably low sudsing detergent composition. In fact, the compositions of this invention show a cleansing performance which is on a par with anionic synthetic detergent compositions without suds depressant in conventional agitator type laundering machines in which cleansing power is not affected by excessive sudsing.

An additional advantage stennning from the synergistic action resulting from the acyl-nonionic combination is that a wider range of fatty acid mixtures than those here tofore suggested as suds depressants is usable in the rennin lation of anionic synthetic detergent compositions having low sudsing power with a high level of detergent power. However, the fatty acid mixtures heretofore suggested have value in practicing the present invention in that the synergistic suds depressing effect is also observed in mixtures of nonionics with the more heterogeneous tures of acyl-containing compounds. Thus, mixtures of at least three high molecular weight compounds having acyl radicals of different carbon atom content can be employed provided the mixture contains at least 50% of said compounds having at least 16 carbon atoms. The presence of at least 5% of said compounds having at least 20 carbon atoms will be beneficial. The presence of other acyl-eontaining materials in relatively small amounts, such as saturated C and C acid and unsaturated C (oleic and linoleic) fatty acidfis not harmful and can even be beneficial, provided the mixture otherwise is constituted of at least 50% saturated' acyl-containing components having 16 or more carbon atoms.

Variations in fatty acid compositions, for example, meetmg the above specifications can fall within the following range of percentages.

Fatty acid compositions which find value in the practice of the present invention are commercial products known as Triple Pressed Stearic Acid, which is mainly a mixture of palmitic and stearic acids, Hyfac 431, and Hydrofol 51 G6. Bulletins issued by the manufacturers report that the latter two products, which are particularly effective, are mixtures of fatty acids derived from hydrogenated marine oils. Hyfac 431, for example, is reported to contain 8% myristic, 29% palmitic, 18% stearic, 26% arachidic, 17% behenic, and 2% oleic acids. Hydrofol 51 GG is reported to contain 7.5% C acid, C16 acid, C13 acid, C20 acid and 14.8% C acid. The unsaturated acid content of this latter mixture is said to be about 4.3%. Generally, any related fatty acid mixture having about 5-15% myristic acid, about 25-35% palmitic acid, about 15-30% stearic acid, about 15-30% arachidic acid, and about 10-20% behenic acid is of outstanding utility in the practice of the invention.

As above indicated the mixture of alkali metal soaps of the fatty acids can be employed as well as the fatty acids or mixtures of fatty acids and soaps. Actually, the normal alkalinity desirable in the heavy-duty detergent compositions contemplated herein is sufficient to convert at least a part of the fatty acid to soap, and in washing solutions of the present detergent compositions the fatty acids can exist in part or wholly as the alkali metal soaps.

The nonionics which act synergistically with the fatty acids and/or soaps in the present invention to depress the sudsing of the anionic sulfate or sulfonate synthetic detergent may be broadly defined as compounds produced by the condensation of alkylene oxide groups (hydrophilic in nature) with an organic hydrophobic compound, which may be aliphatic or alkyl aromatic in nature. As those versed in the art are well aware, the length of the hydrophilic or polyoxyalkylene radical required for condensation with any particular hydrophobic group can be readily adjusted to yield a water soluble compound having the desired degree of balance between hydrophilic and hydrophobic elements.

For example, a well known class of nonionics is made available on the market under the trade name of Pluronic. These compounds are formed by condensing ethylene oxide with a hydrophobic base formed by the condensation of propylene oxide with propylene glycol. The hydrophobic portion of the molecule, of course, exhibits water insolubility. Its molecular weight is of the order of 1500 to 1800. The addition of polyoxyethylene radicals to this hydrophobic portion tends to increase the water solubility of the molecule as a whole. Liquid products are obtained up to the point where polyoxyethylene content is about 50% of the total weight of thetondensation product. Further increase in the relative content of polyoxyethylene to hydrophobic portion renders the final product wax-like or solid in consistency.

The molecular weights of Pluronic L-62, L-64, and F-68, which find especial utility in the practice of the present invention, are approximately 2,000, 3,000 and 8,000 respectively.

Suitable nonionics also include the polyethylene oxide condensates of alkyl phenols. These include the con- '6 densation products of alkyl phenols having about .6to about 12 carbon atoms, either straight chain or branch chain, in the alkyl group with ethylene oxide in amount equal to approximately 10 to approximately 25 moles of ethylene oxide per mole of alkyl phenol. The alkyl substituent in such compounds may be derivedfrom polymerized propylene, di-isobutylene, octane or nonane, for example. Compounds of this nature are commercially available on the market and include, for example, Triton CF 10 which is understood to be octyl phenyl polyether having an average molecular weight of about 1000.

Further suitable nonionics may be derived by the condensation of ethylene oxide with the product resulting from the reaction of propylene oxide and ethylene'diamine. Here again, a series of compounds may be produced, depending on the desired balance between hydrophobic and hydrophilic elements. In the present instance, compounds (molecular weight from about 5000 to about 11,000) of about 40% to about polyoxyethylene content and resulting from the reaction of ethyl ene oxide groups with a hydrophobic base constituted of the reaction products of ethylene diarnine and excess propylene oxide, said base having a molecular weight of the order of 2500 to 3000, have been found especially suitable. This class of compounds is made commercially available under the trade name of Tetronics.

Thus the products which find use in the present invention have an overall molecular weight within the range of about 1,000 to about 12,000.

In general, the nonionics employedin the practice of the present invention, alone or in admixture, are those which possess a hydrophilic polyoxyethylene radical in combination with a hydrophobic base of the group consistingof polyoxypropylene, alkyl phenol in which the alkyl group contains from 6 to 12 carbon atoms, the reaction product of an excess ofpropylene oxide and ethylene diamine. i a v The products of this invetnion can'be prepared 'by incorporating the fatty acid and/or soap and nonionic compound in the crutching apparatus prior to the formation of the product in its final form,'such as flake, granule, powder, etc. In accordance with another procedure, the detergent composition (without suds depressant) inits granular, fiake, powder, etc. form, can be sprayed'with the appropriate mixture of acyl-containing compound and the nonionic to yield ,a detergent composition with depressant sudsing power as herein defined. Combinations 'of these two procedures can also be employed. Formulations in liquid dispersion form can also be produced. It has been indicated above that the heavy-duty detergent compositions which may have sudsing'power depressed by practice of the present invention include those of Byerly U.S.P. 2,486,921 and those of Strain 2,486,922. The active ingredients of such compositions embody an anionic synthetic sulfate or sulfonate detergent salt and an alkali metal tripolyphosphate. The ratio of tripolyphosphate to the combined anionic synthetic detergent and nonionic in the present compositions preferably ranges from about 2:1 to about 6:1, and indeed those products in which the ratio is about 3:1 to about 4:1 are oustanding in their performance. a

The anionic synthetic to which reference is made is generally referred to as a water soluble salt ofan organic sulfuric reaction product havingin'its molecular structure an alkyl radical having from'about 8 to about 18 carbon atoms and a radical selected from the group consisting of sulfonic acid and sulfuric acid ester radicals. Important examples of the synthetics which form an active part of the composition of the present invention are the sodium or potassium alkyl sulfates, especially those derived by sulfation of'higher alcoholsproduced by reduction of glycerides of tallow or coconut oil; sodium or potassium alkyl benzene sulfon-ates, especially those. of the types described in U.S.P; 2,220,0990ar'1d;

2,477,383 .in which the alkyl groups contain from about 9 to about 15 carbon atoms; sodium alkyl glyceryl ether sulfonates, especially those ethers of higher alcohols from tallow and coconut oil; sodium coconut oil fatty acid nionoglyceride sulfates and sulfonates; sodium salts of sulfuric acid esters of the reaction product of one mole of a higher fatty alcohol (e.g. tallow or coconut oil alcohols) and about 3 moles of ethylene oxide; and others known in the art, a number being specifically set forth in the Byerly and Strain patents. Detergent compositions prepared from such water soluble synthetic detergent salts, and mixtures thereof, and containing from about 10% to about 50% of active anionic synthetic with alkali metal pyrophosphate, tripolyphosphate or other higher polyphosphate within the range of ratios above mentioned, are particularly useful in the present compositions. In many such compositions miscellaneous ingredients including moisture, coloring agents, fluorescent dyes, perfume, carboxymethyl cellulose, sodium sulfate, silicatefsodium carbonate and other alkaline salts, and other materials well known as constituents in detergent compositions can be present. The sudsing power all of these detergent compositions is materially depressed by combination with the mixture of compounds herein disclosed without affecting the cleansing efliciency adverse y- The amount of fatty acid mixture employed in the practice of the present invention will vary depending on the particular characteristics desired in the final composition and on the amount of nonionic employed, but usually the presence of from 1 to 10% of the fatty acid mixure or soap, calculated as fatty acid, and based on the total product w ll fi' c Similarly, the amount of nonionic is variable dependupon the characteristics desired in the final product and in the amount of fatty acid mixture employed, but fl om l to 10% of nonionic, based on the total produc l u ice- Preferably, both the fatty acid mixture and nonionic, on the total composition, are each used within the range of 1% to 10%, 2% to 5% being particularly adyantageous. More broadly expressed, the ratio of either acyl-containing component (as fatty acid) or the nonionic to active anionic synthetic detergent can vary from 0.1:1 to 1:1.

The following examples are given to illustrate the manner in which the invention may be practiced. All parts shown are by weight.

Example I.The following ingredients were combined into a detergent composition:

10. parts sodium alkyl benzene sulfonate (the alkyl radical averaging about 12 carbon atoms and being derived from polypropylene) 5- parts Pluronic F-68 (the condensation product of ethylene oxide with a polyoxypropylene base having a molecular weight of about 1500 to about 1800, the condensation product having a molecular weight of about 8,000)

5- parts triple pressed stearic acid (a mixture of fatty acids consisting essentially of about 45% stearic acid and about 55% palmitic acid; minor amounts of unsatnfated (Oleic) acid and of C saturated acid may also be present in some brands of this product 48 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 10 parts silicate solids having a ratio of N21 O:SiO of 22 parts of miscellaneous ingredients of wihch the major 'portion was water and sodium sulfate The resulting product was dissolved in water and em,- ployed to Wash naturally soiled clothes under normal Laundering COnditions in a horizontal rotatable drum type Wifihfit- Th alkalinity present (sodium tripolyphosphate and sodium, silicate). was sufiicient to convert fatty, acid to sodium soap. The sudsing characteristics of the de- .tergent solution were depressed and excellent heavy-duty cleansing efliciency was observed.

Similar results were obtained from a formulation corresponding to the above except that Pluronic L-64 (the condensation product of ethylene oxide with a polyox-ypropylene base having a molecular weight of about 1500-1800, the condensation product having a molecular weight of about 3,000) was used in place of Pluronic F-68. Another detergent composition possessing sudsing and detergent characteristics comparable with those of the basic composition of Example I was prepared by substituting 5.5 parts of the sodium'salt of the alkyl sulfuric acids derived from higher alcohols produced by the reduction of tallow for 5.5 parts of the alkyl benzene suL- fonate.

' Example [I.The same general results of Example I were observed when the following composition was em. ployed to wash naturally soiled clothes under normal laundering conditions in a horizontal drum type washer with the following detergent composition.

10 parts of a mixture of 55% of the sodium salt of the alkyl sulfuric acid esters of the higher alcohols produced by reduction of tallow and 45% of the alkyl benzene sulfonate employed in Example I 5 parts Pluronic F-68 (same as used in Example I) 5 parts of a commercial mixture of fatty acids derived from hydrogenated fish oil and bearing the brand name of Hyfac 431 with the following approximate constitution:

Myristic acid, 8% Palmitic acid, 29% Stearic acid, 18% Arachidic acid, 26% Behenic acid, 17% Oleic acid, 2%

10 parts silicate solids (same as in Example I) 53 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 17 parts of miscellaneous ingredients of which the major portion was water and sodium sulfate Similar results were obtained from a composition cor: responding to the formulation of Example II except that Pluronic L62 was used in place of Pluronic F68,. Plur-. onic L-62 is similar to Pluronic F-68 except that the polyoxyethylene content is lower, the overall molecular weight being about 2,000.

Example IIl.The following composition showed excellent heavy-duty performance with low sudsing char? acteristics and served as an excellent detergent for use in the horizontal drum type washer.

12 parts of a mixture of 55% of the sodium salt of the alkyl sulfuric acids derived from higher alcohols produced by the reduction of tallow and 45% sodium. alkyl benzene sulfonate in which the alkyl radical is derived from polypropylene and averages about 12 carbon atoms 3 parts Pluronic F-68 1 part Pluronic L-64 5 parts of a commercial mixture of higher fatty acids (Hydrofol 51 GG) having the following approximate constitution:

The percent ofunsaturated fatty acid in this mixture was 4.3%

10 parts silicate solids (same as in Example I) 53 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 16 parts of miscellaneous ingredients of which the major portion was. water and sodium sulfate The composition of Example III was modified by substituting the following commercial mixture of fatty acids (Snodotte Acids 592) for that indicated The percent of unsaturated acid in this mixture was 2.4%

The product possessed excellent cleansing power with low sudsing characteristics.

The formulation described in Example III was modified by substituting parts of Hyfac 431 for the fatty acid mixture identified, and by substituting 4 parts of Tetronic 707 for the mixture of Pluronics. Tetronic 707 is a commercially available nonionic condensation product and is understood to have a molecular weight of about 11,000, being obtained by the condensation of ethylene oxide with a hydrophobic base resulting from the condensation of propyleneoxide with ethylene diamine, said base having molecular weight of the order of 2500 to 3000. It is understood also that the ethylene oxide content of Tetronic 707 is about 70-79%.

Example IV.-A composition constituted as follows was prepared:

14 parts alkyl benzene sulfonate (same as that used in Example I) 2 parts of Tetronic 704 (similar to Tetronic 707 except that the polyoxyethylene content is 40-49% and the final molecular weight is about 5000) 0.3 part Pluronic L64 2 parts Hyfac 431 48 parts sodium tripolyphosphate parts silicate solids (as in Example I) 23.7 parts miscellaneous ingredients of which the major constituents Were water and sodium sulfate This product possessed adequate heavy-duty cleansing performance in normal laundering operations and had reduced sudsing characteristics sufficient to enable its use in the horizontal drum type of washing machine.

Example V.-The following composition was prepared:

12% sodium alkyl sulfate derived fromthe alkyl sulfuric acids of higher alcohols produced by the reduction of tallow 4% Pluronic L64- 5% Hyfac 431 41.5% sodium tripolyphosphate 12.5% silicate solids (3.3% Na O:SiO ratio of 1:2 and 9.2% of 1:1 ratio) 20% sodium carbonate 5% miscellaneous This composition possessed excellent heavy-duty cleansing characteristics with low sudsing performance and was used with excellent results in the laundering of naturally soiled clothes in the horizontal drum type washer.

A composition also possessing good cleansing performance with low sudsing characteristics was produced by the substitution of Triton CF 10 for the Pluronic L64 in Example V. It is understood that Triton CF 10 is octyl phenyl polyalkylene oxide ether having an overall molecular weight of about 1000.

Example VI.-The following formulation produces a heavy-duty detergent composition possessing excellent heavy-duty cleansing power with low sudsing characteristics which enable use of the product in the horizontal drum type washer without the. formation of suds to a degree that interferes with adequate agitation of the clothes during washing.

12 parts sodium salt of the alkyl sulfuric acids produced from higher alcohols obtained by the reduction of tallow 10 4part s P1urofiic L64 5 parts Hyfac 431 48 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 10 parts silicate solids (Na O:SiO =l:2) r 21 parts miscellaneous constituents of which the major portion is sodium sulfate and water Example VII.A composition constituted as follows was especially useful for laundering clothes inthe horizontal drum type automatic washer.

14 parts sodium alkyl benzene sulfonate Whose alkyl radical was derived from polypropylene averaging about 12 carbon atoms 2 parts Pluronic F-68 0.3 part Pluronic F 64 3 parts Hyfac 431 48 parts sodium tripolyphosphate 10 parts silicate solids (1:2 ratio of Na o to SiO 22.7 parts miscellaneous of which the major portion was water and sodium sulfate While the foregoing examples employ alkyl benzene sulfonate type synthetic detergentsfhaving from 9 to 15 carbon atoms, averaging about 12 carbon atoms, in the alkyl radical, and/or alkyl sulfates of the type derived from the sulfation of higher alcohols produced by the reduction of tallow, other sulfate or sulfonate synthetic detergents well known in the art can be substituted therefor, alone or in admixture, in these examples. Furthermore, alkali metal soaps of fatty acids employed in the depressant composition of the foregoing examples can be substituted for the acids, or for any of them, as hereinbefore indicated. I

The sudsing depressant of the present invention finds use in detergent compositions other than laundering agents hereinbefore described. In the caseof automatic dish washing detergent compositions, for example, a small amount of anionic synthetic detergent or wetting agent has been found to possess an advantageous effect in reducing spotting and film formation. However, even small amounts of such compounds introduce sudsing problems under the conditions of violent agitation prevailing during operation of the dish washer, and the depressants herein defined have found utility in effectively depressing suds formation occasioned by the presence of the anionic synthetic detergent.

What is claimed is: V

l. A laundering composition possessing heavy-duty cleansing power with depressed sudsing action comprising essentially about 8% to about 49% of a water-soluble alkali metal salt of an anionic organic sulfuric reaction product having in its molecular structure an alkyl radical having from 8 to 18 carbon atoms and a radical selected from the group consisting of sulfonic acid and sulfuric acid ester radicals, the said salt having pronounced sudsing and detergent power in aqueous solution, at least an equal amount by weight of alkali metal polyphosphate, and as a suds depressant about 2% to about 20% of a mixture of about 1 to about 10 parts of (A) at least two compounds having acyl radicals of diiferent carbon atom content and selected from the group consisting of saturated fatty acids having from about 14 to about 31 carbon atoms and water soluble alkali metal soaps thereof, at least 50% of said compounds containing at least 16 carbon atoms, and about 1 to about 10 parts of (B) at least one nonionic compound constituted of a water solubilizing polyoxyalkylene group in chemical combination with an organic hydrophobic compound selected from the group consisting of polyoxypropylene, alkyl phenol in which the alkyl group contains from about 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and the reaction product of an excess of propylene oxide and ethylene diamine.

2. The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the nonionic compound is an octyl phenyl polyalkylene oxide ether having an average molecular weight of about 1,000.

3. The laundering composition of claim '1 in which the acyl containing component corresponds to a mixture of about 5-15 myristic acid, about 25-35% palrnitic acid, about 15-30% stearic acid, about 15-30 arachidic acid, and about -20% behenic acid, and in which the nonionic component is octyl phenyl polyalkylene oxide ether having an average molecular weight of about 1,000.

4, The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the nonionic component is a polyoxyethylene condensation product with a polyoxypropylene hydrophobic base, said hydrophobic base having a molecular weight from about 1500 to about 1800 and the said condensation product having an overall molecular weight from about 2000 to about 8000.

5. The laundering composition of claim 1, inwhich the synthetic anionic detergent is a water soluble salt of an anionic sulfuric reaction product in which the acyl containing component corresponds to a mixture of about 5-15% myristic acid, about 25-35% palmitic acid, about -30% stearic acid, about 15-30% arachidic acid, and about 1020% behenic acid, and in which the nonionic component is a polyoxyethylene condensation product with a polyoxypropylene hydrophobic base, said hydrophobic base having a molecular weight of about 8000.

6. The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the acyl containing component corresponds to a mixture of about 5-15% myristic acid, about 25-35% palmit-ic acid, about 15-30% stearic acid, about 15-30% arachidic acid, and about 1020% behenic acid, and in which the nonionic component is a polyoxyethylene condensation product with a polyoxypropylene hydrophobic base, said hydrophobic base having a molecular weight from about 1500 to about 1800 and the said condensation product having an overall molecular weight of about 3000.

7. The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the nonionic component is the polyoxyethylene condensation product with a hydrophobic base constituted of the reaction product of ethylene diamine and propylene oxide, said base having a molecular weight from about 2500 to about 3000 and said nonionic compound having an overall molecular weight from about 5000 to about 11,000.

8. The laundering composition of claim 1, in which the acyl containing component corresponds to a mixture of about 5-15% myristic acid, about 25-35% palmitic acid, about 15-30% stearic acid, about 15-30% arachidic acid, and about 10-20% behenic acid, and in which the nonionic component has a molecular weight of about 11,000, being derived by the condensation of ethylene oxide with a hydrophobic base constituted of the 12 reaction product of ethylene diamine and propylene oxide, said base having a molecular weight from about 2500 to about 3000.

9. The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the acyl containing component corresponds ,to a mixture of about 5-15% myristic acid, about 25-35% palmitieacid, about 15-30% stearic acid, about 15-30% arac-hidic acid, and about 10-20% behenic acid, and in which the nonionic component has a molecular weight of about 5,000, being derived by the condensation of ethylene oxide with a hydrophobic base constituted of the reaction product of ethylene diamine and propylene oxide, said base having a molecular weight from about 2500 to about 3000.-

10. The laundering compositon of claim 1 in which the ratio of acyl containing component and the ratio- Of nonionic component, relative to the synthetic anionic detergent, are each within the range of 0.1:1 to 1:1.

11. The laundering composition of claim 1 in which the amount of polyphosphate is from about 2 to about 6 times the combined amounts of anionic sulfuric reaction product and nonionic compound.

12. The laundering compositon of claim 4 in which the molecular weight of the nonionic is about 8000.

13. The laundering compositon of claim 4 in which the molecular weight of the nonionic is about 3000.

14. The laundering composition of claim 5 in which the anionic organic sulfuric reaction product is alkali metal alkyl benzene sulfonate in which the alkyl radical has an average of about 12 carbon atoms. v

15. The laundering composition of claim 7 in which the nonionic compound has a molecular weight of about 1 1,000.

16. The laundering composition of claim 6 in which ghe nonionic component has a molecular weight of about 17. The laundering composition of claim 8 in which the anionic organic sulfuric reaction product is alkali metal aLkyl benzene sulfonate in which the alkyl radical has an average of about 12 carbon atoms.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,560,839 Ayo et a1. July 17-, 1951 2,697,695 McDonald Dec. 21, 1954 2,774,735 Becher Dec. 18, I956 FOREIGN PATENTS 521,566 Great Britain May24, 1940 

1. A LAUNDERING COMPOSITION POSSESSING HEAVY-DUTY CLEASING POWER WITH DEPRESED SUBSING ACTION COMPRISING ESSENTIALLY ABOUT 8% BO ABOUT 49% OF A WATER-SOLUBLE ALKALI METAL SALT OF AN ANIONIC ORGANIC SULFURIC REACTION PRODUCT HAVING IN ITS MOLECULAR STRUCTURE OF ALKYL RADICAL HAVING FROM 8 TO 18 CARBON ATOMS AND A RADICAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF SULFONIC ACID AND SULFURIC ACID ESTER RADICALS, THE SAID SALT HAVING PRONOUNCED SUDSING AND DETERGENT POWER IN AWUEOUS SOLUTION, AT LEAST AN EQUAL AMOUNT BY WEIGHT OF ALKALI METAL POLYPHOSPHATE, AND AS SUDS DEPRESSANT ABOUT 2%* TO ABOUT 20% OF A MIXTURE OF ABOUT 1 TO ABOUT 10 PARTS OF (A) AT LEAST TWO COMPOUNDS HAVING ACYL RADICALS OF DIFFERENT CARBON ATOM CONTENT AND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF SATURATED FATTY ACIDS HAVING FROM ABOUT 14 TO ABOUT 31 CARBON ATOMS AND WATER SOLUBLE ALKALI METAL SOUPS THEREOF, AT LEAST 50% OF SAID COMPOUNDS CONTAINING AT LEAST 16 CARBON ATOMS, AND ABOUT 1 TO ABOUT 10 PARTS OF (B) AT LEAST ONE NONIONIC COMPOUND CONSTITUTED OF A WATER SOLUBILIZING POLYOXYALKYLENE GROUP IN CHEMICAL COMBINATION WITH AN ORGANIC HYDROPHOBIC COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF POLYOXYPROPYLENE, ALKYL PHENOL IN WHICH THE ALKYL GROUP CONTAINS FROM ABOUT 6 TO 12 CARBON ATOMS, AND THE REACTION PRODUCT OF AN EXCESS OF PROPYLENE OXIDE AND ETHYLENE DIAMINE. 